LDOS vs LHX vs ESLT Stock Comparison

Leidos Holdings, L3Harris Technologies and Elbit Systems Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
LDOS Leidos Holdings, Inc.
$139.65 +12.9% 1M -26.2% 1Y
Market cap
$17.36B
P/E
12.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$17.63B
Div. yield
0.01%
Defense Industrials
4 wins
ESLT Elbit Systems Ltd
$790.00 +7.5% 1M +62.2% 1Y
Market cap
$35.41B
P/E
55.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.55B
Div. yield
0.00%
Defense Industrials
4 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

L3Harris Technologies leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (L3Harris Technologies 4, Leidos Holdings 4, Elbit Systems 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionLDOSLHXESLTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $17.36B $48.23B $35.41B LHX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 12.6x 25.9x 55.7x LDOS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 11.0x 22.7x 56.7x LDOS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +3.4% +83.2% +13.7% LHX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 7.8% 4.8% 7.4% LDOS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 13.9% 11.8% 17.8% ESLT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 1.8x -0.9x ESLT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.02% 0.00% LHX
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -26.2% -10.9% +62.2% ESLT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +7.2%/yr +3.0%/yr +38.5%/yr ESLT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 35.6% 28.6% 44.7% LHX
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 70/100 67/100 60/100 LDOS

Percentile Scorecard

LDOSLHXESLT

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisLDOSLHXESLT
Valuation 98 #3 of 100 93 #8 of 100 44 #56 of 100
Growth 58 #41 of 97 81 #19 of 97 88 #13 of 97
Profitability 86 #14 of 96 74 #26 of 96 73 #27 of 96
Financial Health 33 #71 of 105 36 #68 of 105 58 #45 of 105
Shareholder Returns 75 #17 of 65 53 #31 of 65 36 #42 of 65
Overall 70 67 60
  • LDOS ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • LHX ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • ESLT ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodLDOSLHXESLTSPY
1 month +12.9%+9.1%+7.5% -0.2%
3 months +18.0%-15.0%-3.5% +3.9%
6 months -4.4%-20.2%-5.3% +8.2%
Year to date -22.6%-11.7%+36.7% +12.9%
1 year -26.2%-10.9%+62.2% +12.3%
3 years +54.3%+51.7%+324.9% +87.4%
3 years, per year +15.6%+14.9%+62.0% +23.3%
5 years +41.7%+15.8%+409.3% +67.9%
5 years, per year +7.2%+3.0%+38.5% +10.9%
10 years +239.1%+191.4%+705.8% +261.1%
10 years, per year +13.0%+11.3%+23.2% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureLDOSLHXESLTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 35.6%28.6%44.7% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 37.2%29.0%39.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.260.190.71 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.74-0.381.39 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -50.3%-40.4%-35.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -30.0%-31.5%-22.1% -1.2%
52-week high $199.55$378.48$1,014.33 $779.14
52-week low $100.00$233.68$454.95 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleLDOSLHXESLT
P/E now vs peer median 12.8xmedian 26.5x 26.0xmedian 26.5x 56.8xmedian 26.5x
P/S now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 3.0x 1.2xmedian 3.0x 4.3xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 9.8xmedian 14.6x 11.1xmedian 14.6x 37.0xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 8.1xmedian 26.4x 17.2xmedian 26.4x 37.0xmedian 26.4x
P/B now vs peer median 3.3xmedian 2.5x 2.4xmedian 2.5x 8.3xmedian 2.5x
PEG now vs peer median 0.45median 0.90 0.79median 0.90 1.80median 0.90

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsLDOSLHXESLT
Revenue $17.63B $39.15B $8.55B
Gross profit $3.14B $10.02B $2.14B
Operating income $2.03B $4.04B $787.82M
Net income $1.40B $1.87B $636.61M
Free cash flow $2.16B $2.81B $992.19M
R&D – – $582.72M
EPS (diluted) $10.92 $9.93 $13.56
Cash & equivalents $748.00M $1.52B $255.34M
Total debt $21.66B $11.00B $92.13M
Shares (diluted) 126.00M 187.30M 46.92M
Enterprise value $14.07B $44.71B $31.98B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricLDOSLHXESLT
P/E 12.8x 26.0x 56.8x
P/FCF 8.1x 17.2x 37.0x
P/Operating cash flow 7.6x 14.7x 37.0x
P/S 1.0x 1.2x 4.3x
P/B 3.3x 2.4x 8.3x
P/Tangible book 4.0x 3.6x 8.3x
EV/EBITDA 9.8x 11.1x 37.0x
EV/EBIT 11.2x 14.3x 45.5x
EV/Revenue 1.3x 1.5x 4.2x
EV/FCF 10.5x 20.6x 36.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 9.9x 17.5x 36.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.45 0.79 1.80

Growth

14 metrics
MetricLDOSLHXESLT
Revenue growth (1Y) 3.4% 83.2% 13.7%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.9% 29.6% 14.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 4.8% 82.2% 18.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 14.4% 27.7% 14.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) -0.4% 86.9% 37.1%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 21.1% 32.2% 26.5%
Net income growth (1Y) -0.8% 10.0% 58.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 24.8% 32.5% 33.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 1.3% 9.9% 50.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 28.6% 33.0% 31.5%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 54.9% 31.3% 22.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 35.7% 15.5% 82.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 63.2% 29.8% 105.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 41.7% 15.2% 175.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricLDOSLHXESLT
Gross margin 17.8% 25.6% 25.0%
EBITDA margin 13.2% 13.4% 11.3%
Operating margin 11.5% 10.3% 9.2%
Pretax margin 10.2% 9.7% 8.1%
Net margin 7.8% 4.8% 7.4%
FCF margin 12.3% 7.2% 11.6%
Operating cash flow margin 13.0% 8.4% 11.6%
Return on equity 26.8% 9.5% 14.7%
Return on assets 9.0% 4.4% 4.7%
Return on invested capital 13.9% 11.8% 17.8%
Return on capital employed 16.5% 12.0% 11.0%
Asset turnover 1.1x 0.9x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.6x 1.8x 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 0.6% 0.3% 0.3%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricLDOSLHXESLT
Debt / assets 38.6% 25.6% 0.7%
Debt / equity 1.1x 0.6x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.3x 1.8x -0.9x
Debt / FCF 2.8x 3.9x 0.1x
Liabilities / assets 65.9% 53.7% 68.2%
Equity / assets 34.1% 46.3% 31.8%
Interest coverage – – –
Current ratio 1.6x 1.2x 1.4x
Quick ratio 1.4x 0.8x 0.8x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 3.20 2.68 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricLDOSLHXESLT
Dividend yield 1.2% 1.9% 0.5%
Net buyback yield 3.8% 1.9% 0.0%
Shareholder yield 5.0% 3.8% 0.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) 15.5% 49.1% 22.7%
Payout ratio (FCF) 10.0% 32.8% 14.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) 3.3% 2.9% -54.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 2.8% 2.1% -17.4%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusLDOSLHXESLT
Forward P/E 11.0xFY2026 22.7xFY2026 56.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $12.75FY2026 $11.44FY2026 $13.93FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +6.3%FY2026 +6.6%FY2026 +22.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -9.0% +10.6% +21.8%
Revenue, next fiscal year $17.52BFY2026 $24.16BFY2026 $8.84BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.0%FY2026 +10.5%FY2026 +11.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +14.9% +0.3% +21.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersLDOSLHXESLT
Held by institutions 79.3% 87.5% 19.9%
Institutions holding 773 1,691 384
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.1% -0.5% -7.1%
Institutions buying 380 847 202
Institutions selling 294 570 106
Buyers to sellers 1.29 1.49 1.91

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

LDOSLHXESLT
LDOS 1.00 0.44 0.25
LHX 0.44 1.00 0.41
ESLT 0.25 0.41 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, LDOS, LHX and ESLT?

L3Harris Technologies (LHX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Leidos Holdings (LDOS) $17.36B, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) $48.23B, Elbit Systems (ESLT) $35.41B.

Which stock is cheaper, LDOS, LHX and ESLT?

Leidos Holdings (LDOS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 12.6x, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 25.9x, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 55.7x). On next year's consensus earnings, Leidos Holdings (LDOS) is cheapest (Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 11.0x, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 22.7x, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 56.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

L3Harris Technologies (LHX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Leidos Holdings (LDOS) +3.4%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) +83.2%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) +13.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

Leidos Holdings (LDOS) has the highest net margin (Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 7.8%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 4.8%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 7.4%). On return on invested capital, Elbit Systems (ESLT) leads (Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 13.9%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 11.8%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 17.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Elbit Systems (ESLT) returned the most: Leidos Holdings (LDOS) -26.2%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) -10.9%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) +62.2%. Over five years, Elbit Systems (ESLT) compounded fastest (Leidos Holdings (LDOS) +7.2%/yr, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) +3.0%/yr, Elbit Systems (ESLT) +38.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

L3Harris Technologies (LHX) has the highest dividend yield: Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 0.01%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 0.02%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 0.00%. Elbit Systems (ESLT) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) has been the steadiest (Leidos Holdings (LDOS) 35.6%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) 28.6%, Elbit Systems (ESLT) 44.7%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, LDOS, LHX and ESLT?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) leads on 4. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.